There Are Worse Places
by GaeilgeRua
Summary: Needing somewhere to stay for the night, Hermione knows of a place they can go. Even if it's not ideal.


This was written in response to Hermione's Haven's Roll-a-Drabble for April 24th. Mine took a little longer than I thought to finish it since I had other stories I had to finish first for comps. The theme for this month's RaD was crossovers. The pairing and trope I received were Hermione/Sherlock and 'huddling for warmth'. I had to laugh because I don't associate Sherlock with 'huddling for warmth' and apparently my muse didn't either. So this didn't end up how I originally planned, but I do like where it's at and I hope you all do too.

Many thanks to my alpha/beta chicka, SweetTale4u, for her help. Hopefully, Sherlock isn't too OOC after her help. I also want to thank xxDustNight88 for her own brilliant Shermione stories, because without them, I never would've even contemplated this couple.

Disclaimer: I do not own anyone or anything recognizable from either the Harry Potter or the Sherlock fandoms. Nor am I making any money off of this story.

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"Where are we?" His voice was deep and scratchy as it echoed off the ruined walls.

Hermione stumbled over a fallen statue. She caught herself on a large hump of stone before her knees crashed to the ground. Righting herself, Hermione turned to look at her companion. "My old school."

A black eyebrow quirked in amusement. "Your old school." He snorted as he looked at their surroundings. Pale eyes settled on Hermione again. "I could feel the shift in our surroundings as we passed the boarded gate, but you mean to tell me you went to school among old ruins and a Keep Out sign?"

"No. Wait!" Hermione's eyes widened. "You don't see the corridor we're in right now?" At the shake of his head, she whipped out her wand and cast a revealing charm. "The school's wards fell during the war, and I never realised that the Ministry replaced them once the war was over." Turning back to her companion, she placed her wand against his temple. "May I?"

He took a step back, glancing at her wand out of the corner of his eye. "What are you going to do?"

"Help you to see better." She smiled gently. "Trust me?"

Stepping close to her again, he closed his eyes and gave her a short nod.

Muttering under her breath, Hermione ended the spell with a gentle tap against his temple. After a few quiet moments, she spoke again, "Okay, you can open your eyes."

Dark lashes fluttered, and Hermione watched as his eyes tried to focus. When he stumbled, she reached out and grasped his upper arms in her hands.

"It's okay, Sherlock, I've got you."

Hermione could tell the moment his eyes were finally able to focus again when a small gasp escaped his lips. "What is this place? Where did it come from?"

"It's been here the whole time, but the Ministry for Magic placed a cloaking charm to keep Muggles away and the spell I just used allows you to see through the charm. What you see around us is Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry," Hermione released his arms and frowned, looking around at what was left of her home for six years. "Or at least it used to be prior to it being destroyed beyond repair during the war. Come on, we still have a ways to go before we reach where we'll sleep for the night."

Sherlock silently followed Hermione through the crumbling remains of the once grand school, listening as she explained different areas as they passed them.

As they turned the corner and a large hole at the end of the corridor came into view, Sherlock finally broke his silence, "I would ask why the castle hasn't been torn down and a new one built in its place, but the building has refused any attempts to do so, correct?"

Hermione looked over at him, her eyebrows near her hairline. "How'd you know that?"

He frowned as they continued down the corridor. "The only way I can explain it is that I can _feel_ that the school is trying to repair itself and doesn't want to be torn down."

She stopped in her tracks, confusion was written all over her face. "How?"

Sherlock took three more steps before he realised that Hermione was no longer next to him. He turned to look at her. "How what, my dear?"

"How are you able to feel what the school wants? You're not a wizard, are you?"

He narrowed his eyes at her. "You've known me how long? Has anything I've ever done given you any indication that I am anything other than a Muggle?"

Hermione nodded her head. "Good point." She started walking again, the wheels turning in her head. "I just don't understand why you can feel the school's magic."

Rolling his eyes, Sherlock sighed as he fell back into step with Hermione as she met up with him. "While I am a Muggle and not used to such magic, I've been around magic with you and your friends enough to be able to tell the subtle changes in the surrounding area of where magic is used."

"Huh. Makes sense," Hermione mused. They neared the hole in the wall, and Hermione made to climb through it into the darkness beyond.

"What are you doing? Where does that hole go?"

She stopped with her right foot in midair and looked over her left shoulder. "It leads to my old common room. We should have some beds in the dorms we can use for the night or at the very least the common room sofas. Come on."

Not waiting for him to follow, Hermione climbed through into the darkness.

Sherlock slowly followed the sound of Hermione's footfalls, using his hands against the walls on either side of him. Suddenly, the end of the tunnel was bathed in a warm glow, allowing him to find his way easier. As he stepped into the room, he found that it was mostly intact, although, at some point, the tapestries had been torn down and the windows shattered. Turning to his left, he found Hermione standing before a roaring fire, surrounded by well-worn sofas.

Hermione turned around and smiled sadly. "I wish you could have seen the common room while I was a student. It was beautiful. Let me go see what the dorms look like."

Walking around the room, Sherlock noticed that there were still student textbooks and parchment paper lying scattered on the tables as if the children had been disturbed in the midst of studying.

"The dorms are destroyed," Hermione choked out. As she reached Sherlock's side, he offered her hand and support. Taking a deep breath, she continued, "So it looks like we'll have to bunk here for the night before we continue on to our final destination tomorrow."

He blinked.

Hermione snickered. "I know, not our ideal place to sleep, but it will be better here than out in the elements. We can move one of the sofas to face the fire and snuggle there for the night."

"Snuggle…"

This time Hermione laughed. "Hey! At least I didn't say huddling for warmth!"

"Witch," Sherlock said as he wrapped her in his arms. "You're lucky I love you."

She grinned up at him. "I love you too."


End file.
